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Case Study 7.0

The Great Barrier Reef is one of the largest coral reef systems in the world, located off the coast of Queensland, Australia. It contains over 3000 individual reefs and hundreds of islands. Tourism to the reef grew dramatically between 1975 and 1990, with visitor numbers increasing from under 1 million to nearly 2 million per year by 1996. However, this surge in tourism led to increasing environmental impacts like physical damage to coral from boats and divers, as well as pollution and changes to fish behavior from feeding. In an attempt to manage these effects, the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park was established in 1975 with zoning regulations to restrict certain activities and require permits. Educational efforts are also used to encourage responsible tourist behavior and conservation of the fragile reef

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46 views2 pages

Case Study 7.0

The Great Barrier Reef is one of the largest coral reef systems in the world, located off the coast of Queensland, Australia. It contains over 3000 individual reefs and hundreds of islands. Tourism to the reef grew dramatically between 1975 and 1990, with visitor numbers increasing from under 1 million to nearly 2 million per year by 1996. However, this surge in tourism led to increasing environmental impacts like physical damage to coral from boats and divers, as well as pollution and changes to fish behavior from feeding. In an attempt to manage these effects, the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park was established in 1975 with zoning regulations to restrict certain activities and require permits. Educational efforts are also used to encourage responsible tourist behavior and conservation of the fragile reef

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Case study The Great Barrier Reef, Australia

The Great Barrier Reef is made up of some 600 islands, 300 cay (reef islands) and almost 3000
submerged reefs. It is one of the largest coral reefs in the world. It is home to 15 000 species of fish, 400
sponges, 4000 mollusks and it is made up of 350 different types of coral. Because of its location at a
distance offshore on the North East coast of Queensland, Australia it has remained relatively
undeveloped in terms of tourism. However, in the last quarter (and particularly the last decade) of the
twentieth century tourism began to expand on the Reef. Between 1975 and 1990, charter boats
numbers grew from 135 to 300 and registered speed boats in the area increased from 15 000 to 24 000
in this period. In 1982, large high-speed catamarans were introduced and these offered much easier
access to the reef. In the period 1982–92 there was a 35-fold increase in visitors and they were going to
four times as many sites on the reef by the end of this period. In 1988 over 900 000 tourist visited the
area, but this had risen to just under 2 million by 1996. The standard trip to the reef did not change very
much in the last 20 years of the twentieth century. Most visitors take a day trip by large catamaran and
this is moored to a pontoon anchored close to the ridge. Some visitors travel to islands that are part of
the reef. In addition to the overall growth there has been a substantial increase in international visitors.
In the late 1990s, the Japanese formed the largest single international group of visitors, with increasing
numbers from Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Singapore. The chief activity on the reef is scuba diving and
snorkeling. Sight-seeing from semi-submersible and glass-bottomed vessels is also popular. By the late
1990s, there was evidence of increasing environmental impacts. These include physical destruction of
reefs by anchors and divers’ feet and hands. Divers can even cause damage to the coral merely by
resting on it, as it is so sensitive. There has been localized water pollution from sewage and boat fuel.
Some divers feed and/or touch fish. This seems an innocuous form of activity but can lead to the
modification of fish behavior. Many of the catamaran operator’s crew also feed the fish from the back of
the boat as part of the tourist experience. This may also have an impact on the behavior of the fish, as
they become accustomed to being fed at particularly times in specific places to entertain visitors. The
removal of coral and fish specimens has also been reported. The Great Barrier Reef Marine Park was set
up in 1975, partly in response to growing environmental problems, but also on an attempt to provide a
framework to deal with the effects of increasing number of tourists. The main strategy within the Park
management is a zoning system. There are three main categories in this zoning system:

(a) A general use zone (about 80 per cent of the park in the late 1990s) where most activities are
permitted, provided they are ecologically sustainable.

(b) National Park zones that allow only activities that do not remove living resources.

(c) Preservation Zones which permit only scientific research.

Tourism is permitted in two of the zones but not the Preservation Zone. However permits are required
in both the General Use and National Park Zones. Factors considered in the issuing of permits are: the
size, extent, and location of usage, access conditions, likely effects on the environment in general and
ecosystems in particular and likely effects upon resources and their conservation. In relation to any
large-scale development, proponents are encouraged to produce Environmental Impact Assessments
and follow this with Environmental Impact Statements as a routine part of the development process.
Tourists are targeted via a number of educational strategies including pictorial symbols on the reef,
leaflets, guides and codes of conduct. These are backed up with local controls and prohibitions
depending on particular circumstances. Combined together, these are an attempt to encourage
responsible behavior to conserve the marine environment.

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